Device to protect monitors from surge events
Published by Lydia Woellwarth,
Editor
World Pipelines,
American Innovations (AI) is proud to announce SurgeProtect devices to help ensure remote monitoring units (RMU) and rectifiers are protected from lightning strikes and other electrical surges. SurgeProtect devices are designed to work together to mitigate the effects of strikes on a cathodic protection (CP) system and includes a: High Energy Surge Arrester (HESA), SurgeFuse and SurgeDetector. Each device can be purchased individually or together as a kit. Lightning strikes can travel through an AC tower or ground rod to a pipeline. A surge on the pipeline will be looking for a path to ground, and that path can be through CP systems or RMU’s.
The HESA is the first line of defence to ensure protection against current surges. It is designed with a 40 kA surge capability, which is four times more than an average arrester. An average bolt of lightning carries an electric current of 30 kA, so the HESA was built to withstand a surge of that magnitude and more.
SurgeFuse is installed between rectifier outputs and remote monitor inputs to provide a last line of defence against a surge. It can protect up to two channels of the RMU by intentionally breaking to stop the flow of electrical current if the current surge has exceeded the capabilities of the HESA.
SurgeDetector takes in surge activity to help determine risk. It detects and logs high energy surge events. The ground wire from the HESA feeds through the current transformer on SurgeDetector. When the HESA diverts a high energy event to ground, SurgeDetector outputs a pulse which can be accumulated by an RMU. This information can be tracked over time using RMU’s via Bullhorn Web. Knowing the number of high energy surge events can help determine whether it is time to replace the HESA, as they can degrade over time.
Making the decision to protect CP system and pipeline investments can help prevent mitigating dangerous and costly pipeline and CP system issues. SurgeProtect devices can help.
Read the article online at: https://www.worldpipelines.com/equipment-and-safety/11122018/device-to-protect-monitors-from-surge-events/
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